


Some Pieces Have Gone Missing

by TheGreatCatsby



Category: Psycho-Pass
Genre: F/M, Post Movie, various other characters - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-19
Updated: 2016-02-19
Packaged: 2018-05-21 16:22:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,861
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6057994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheGreatCatsby/pseuds/TheGreatCatsby
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She gave him hope.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Some Pieces Have Gone Missing

**Author's Note:**

> Have fun!

“Are you okay?” 

Vacant eyes stared back at her. 

“Why wouldn't I be?” 

* 

“You don't just forget that sort of thing. You don't drop it. I wish I could.” 

They were in the rec room. Akane didn't spend a lot of time in there. The longest she'd spent there was with Kagari, when he made her dinner and got them both drunk. 

Now, she was with Ginoza, who didn't make dinner, but they were drunk. After going overseas they spent more time together at night. Ginoza still had things he needed to say, things he'd avoided saying for the past few years in the hope that Kougami might come back. Akane wanted to sit with him, listen to him. She didn't want him to be alone. He had already been left alone too often. 

“You punched him,” Akane said. “I think that's as good a closure as any.” 

Ginoza took a sip of his wine. He'd stopped drinking whiskey a while ago, around the same time that he'd stopped wearing his father's brown coat, switched it out for his black one, and grew his hair. 

“Kougami never apologized,” he murmured, and then sighed, setting his glass down. “I suppose now is as good a time as any to move on.” 

“Moving on is good,” Akane said. 

“You seem to understand it more than I do,” Ginoza said, his cheeks flushed, possibly from being drunk. “You accept things and move on. You don't let them weigh you down, bother you.” 

Akane gave him a small smile. “It isn't always easy.” 

“That makes it more admirable,” Ginoza said, glancing down. “You give-” He cut himself off. 

“Ginoza?” 

Ginoza shook his head. “You've given me so much,” he said, quietly. “You've given me a second chance.”

“And you've been there for me,” Akane said. “We help each other out.” 

“I didn't know what it was like,” Ginoza said, fingers tapping against his wine glass. 

“What to you mean?” 

“To know someone who could give me hope.” 

* 

They had their first kiss that night, when Akane walked Ginoza back to his quarters. She kissed him, soft and gentle, gave him the opening to pull away if that's what he needed to do. He looked surprised, but then he kissed her back. 

“You give me hope, too,” she told him. 

He looked like he wanted to cry, but instead he pulled her close and whispered, “Thank you.” 

* 

“Shimotsuki,” Akane barked, “what are you doing?” 

Mika didn't lower her dominator. Ginoza held a gun in his hand, pointed at the criminal they'd meant to apprehend. His dominator had been knocked away in the fight, and the criminal knelt before him. 

“I'm not going to shoot,” Ginoza said, “but I need to cover him.” 

“I have him,” Akane said. 

“No,” Ginoza said. “The dominators won't read him.” 

Akane pointed her dominator at the man on the floor. Crime coefficient: 56. She felt her blood run cold. 

Not again. 

“Then he isn't a criminal,” Mika said. 

“We need to question him,” Ginoza snapped. “We saw him on camera kidnap two people. We know he's been testing illegal drugs on them.” 

“Drop the gun, Enforcer,” Mika said. 

“If I drop it, he runs.” 

“Shimotsuki,” Akane warned, but Mika pulled the trigger. 

Ginoza staggered back, the gun fell from his hand, and he collapsed on the ground. Akane rushed forward at the same time as the man who'd been held at gunpoint tried to dart away, launched herself at him, and sent him sprawling onto the ground. She managed to get on top of him, twisting his arms behind his back and securing them with a pair of handcuffs. 

Then she pulled him up, turned around, and saw Kunizuka leaning over Ginoza. Hinakawa hovered next to her, pale. 

“Go find his dominator,” Kunizuka said to him. Hinakawa nodded and darted off. 

“If we can't trust the dominator, what can we trust?” Mika asked. 

“You can trust your team,” Kunizuka said. 

Mika paled. 

Kunizuka and Sugo managed to lift Ginoza up between them. “I think we can take him back ourselves,” Kunizuka said to Akane. 

Akane nodded. 

“The Chief is going to want to know why,” Kunizuka added. 

Mika shifted uncomfortably, looking lost. 

“I'll deal with the Chief,” Akane said. 

*

“The fact still stands that your Enforcer refused to listen to an Inspector.” 

Akane had the urge to curl her hands into fists. She refrained, trying to stay as calm as possible. “We had proof that this man was engaging in criminal activities. Enforcer Ginoza couldn't subdue him with the dominator because he was criminally asymptomatic, I believe, and therefore used the man's weapon against him. He wouldn't have shot.” 

“Are you letting your personal feelings get in the way of your duty, Inspector?” Kasei asked, peering at Akane over her glasses. Glasses Akane knew that she didn't need. An odd thing Kasei and Ginoza had in common, but for very different reasons. 

“I'm doing my job based on what I know,” Akane said. “And Enforcer Ginoza was doing his job based on the resources available to him at the time.” 

“I cannot understand why an Inspector would want to throw away her career for the sake of one dog,” Kasei murmured. 

Akane narrowed her eyes. “I'm not.” 

“Latent criminals are the detritus of society,” Kasei said. “It would be unwise to become involved with one.” 

“We're talking about this case,” Akane said, “and this man needed to be interrogated. I understand why Inspector Shimotsuki acted the way she did, but I also know that Enforcer Ginoza was in the right. We needed to apprehend this man.” 

“You apprehended him without the use of an illegal weapon,” Kasei said. “Inspector Shimotsuki acted appropriately. I hope in the future you will do the same.” 

*

Ginoza woke up while Akane was in her meeting, and she was calmer by the time she got to the medical ward. He was sitting up, checking messages on his communication device, and when he saw her his expression became concerned. 

“What happened?” 

“We brought him in,” Akane said. “The Chief isn't happy with either of us right now.” 

Ginoza frowned. “I don't understand. There was enough evidence outside of a dominator reading to convict him.” 

“I know.” 

“This is a bit too much like the cases from before,” Ginoza added. “I was looking back at the Makishima case before you came.” 

“Ginoza,” Akane sighed. 

“The Chief can't fault me for that,” Ginoza said. “All of the cases involving people like this tend to get swept under the rug. If there is a fault in the system, it should be exposed so that it can be fixed. These people are dealt with, I've been told, but I don't know how.” 

“Ginoza,” Akane repeated. “I don't think this is a good idea.” 

Ginoza narrowed his eyes at her. “What do you mean?” 

Akane wasn't sure. On the one hand she wanted to tell him everything. She knew it would put him at risk, but Ginoza was smart. He would see past her lies, past her brushing off the inconsistencies of how the System dealt with various cases. They had been together for over three months, and it felt like longer. She felt like she could tell him. 

Not here. 

Already, her hesitation worried him. He reached out for her hand. “What happened?” 

Akane shook her head. “Later. When you get out.” 

She made the decision right there. She would tell him everything. 

*

His real hand curled around hers as she told him about the true nature of the Sibyl System. They sat in her bed, huddled close together. This was how they they shared intimacy, in truths that they didn't shy away from. 

“Thank you for telling me,” Ginoza murmured when she was done. “You shouldn't have to deal with that alone.” 

“If the Chief knew that you knew,” Akane said, “it could be dangerous.” 

Ginoza nodded. “I can still help. You can talk to me now.” 

“I feel like I'm playing a game,” Akane said, “and I don't want to play games. Not with this.” 

*

It became a routine. Ginoza would go home with Akane and they would lay in bed and Akane would talk about her frustrations with the System. Ginoza gave her advice, or a listening ear. 

It was outright flying in the face of the Chief's advice, bringing Ginoza home every night. They ate together, talked about nothing, and enjoyed simply sharing the same space. 

And then, as they were falling asleep, Ginoza ran his fingers through Akane's hair and murmured, “I love you.” 

The words were as natural as breathing. “I love you, too.” 

*

“Inspector.” 

Akane had taken a brief break from writing reports, went to get coffee, and when she returned Kunizuka blocked the path to her desk. 

“Is something wrong?” 

“Ginoza was called to the Chief's office,” Kunizuka said. “I thought you might want to know.” 

Akane felt cold. “Thank you.” 

She walked out of the office, was halfway towards the elevators when her communication device rang. 

“Akane.” It was Shion. “You need to get over here.” 

“Can it wait?” Akane asked. 

“The Chief wants to see you. She has Ginoza here.” 

Akane practically ran. 

* 

She'd been in this position once. She'd seen other people go through it. She never imagined that Ginoza would be restrained on a metal table, eyes wide with fear, locked onto Akane's before the device was placed over his head, obscuring his face. 

Kasei stood at the controls, fingers tapping against the keyboard. Shion sat off to the side, watching Akane. She mouthed, “I'm sorry.” 

“This is the best option for both parties,” Kasei said. “Karanomori, I must ask you to leave the room.” 

Shion stood up, squeezed Akane's shoulder as she walked past, and disappeared through the door. 

Akane glared at Kasei. “You don't have to do this.” 

“He is a latent criminal,” Kasei said, “a risk to the security of this System, which keeps the country from descending into chaos. Tsunemori, I assumed you were smarter than this. Now your Enforcer will suffer for your lapse of judgement.” 

She'd made the choice to tell him. She'd brought him into this. 

“It's not your fault,” Ginoza said. “I wanted to know.” 

“This is what is going to happen,” Kasei said. “A memory wipe. Targeted memories. Unfortunately, emotions can't be erased, but the memories should do the job. You will watch.” 

“Don't do this.” 

“That isn't your choice.”

“Just take away what I told him about the System,” Akane pleaded. “Don't take away anything else.”

“You must learn from your mistake.” Kasei activated the device. 

Ginoza's body went stiff, then arched off the table as he struggled. Kasei manipulated the flow of memories, and Akane could see them flickering by on the screen, could see how Kasei stopped at Masaoka's death. 

Ginoza screamed. 

“Stop!” Akane cried. 

The scream turned into a sob, and the memories faded from blood red to stark white. The isolation facility. 

Then, Akane's face. Akane offering him a position as an Enforcer. Her smile. Akane saw herself smiling up at Ginoza multiple times. 

Then her face distorted on the screen, replaced by blackness. 

“Stop,” she repeated, but it didn't stop. 

Over and over again, the things she remembered. Laughing with Ginoza over a drink, curled up next to him at night, holding hands, all distorted and faded before her eyes. The past few years, the past few months of the two of them, gone. She could see Ginoza's hands clenched, his real hand bleeding from how hard his nails dug into the skin, and she shuddered at the thought of Ginoza seeing these memories one by one slipping away and being aware that something good was being taken from him. 

We can start again, Akane thought, but perhaps they couldn't. Kasei would take and take until Ginoza was a shell. 

Finally, the memories stopped. 

Akane rushed forward, pulled the device off Ginoza's head. The restraints released, and Ginoza jerked up, tears tracing lines down his cheeks. 

“Are you okay?” she asked. 

She put her hand on his shoulder, gently. He shook under her touch, looked up at her with confusion. Without recognition for what the gesture meant. 

“Why wouldn't I be?” His voice was hoarse. 

Akane swallowed. 

“You are both dismissed,” Kasei said. “Enforcer Ginoza, you are to return to your quarters. Alone.” 

Akane ignored Kasei. “Come on.” 

She helped him up, and he swayed on his feet. “Tsunemori, I'm fine,” he said, but she dragged him out of the room. “I've been sent to my quarters. I can do this myself.” 

“Come on,” she repeated. She pulled him down the corridor and into the nearest bathroom, turning on the water. 

Ginozs stared at the sink. 

“You have,” Akane swallowed, “you were crying.” 

Ginoza reached up to touch his cheek and his eyes widened. “I was?” 

Akane wanted to cry. She watched as Ginoza reached for the water, then suddenly stopped, turned, and rushed into the nearest stall. 

She cringed when she heard him retching, went to kneel next to him, rubbed his back as his stomach turned inside out. He shook harder now, and she remembered how she felt after her memory scoop, sick and shaken and like her memories weren't her own anymore. She couldn't imagine actually watching them fade into nothing. 

Ginoza fell back against the wall, breathing hard. He wrapped his arms around himself and stared at Akane with wide eyes. 

“Ginoza?” Akane reached towards him and he flinched. 

“What happened?” he demanded, voice cracking. “I can't—I can't look at you.” He leaned forward, pressing his hands to his face. 

“Ginoza-” Akane started. 

“Inspector.” 

Akane froze. “What?” 

“What happened?” 

Akane reached for him again and he jerked away. “I'm sorry. I'm sorry.” 

“You shouldn't apologize for doing your job.” The emotion was muted now, replaced by something close to cold professionalism. 

“It's not like that.” 

“Please go.” 

Akane didn't want to leave. But Ginoza hadn't uncovered his face. “I'm around if you need me.” 

She stood up, and Ginoza didn't move. She wanted to pull him into her arms, like she'd done before to comfort him, but she knew it would make things worse. So she walked away. 

This is what Kasei had done to them. 

When she returned to the office, there was a message waiting for her. An update to Ginoza's internal personal file. 

It read, “Ginoza Nobuchika. Crime coefficient: 200. Transferred to Division 2.” 

* 

There was no new enforcer. Ginoza's desk remained empty. He never came back for his plants, and Akane took care of them every day, so that if he did he wouldn't find them wilted. He didn't come, and she never saw him. Division One and Division Two were kept far away. 

She gave him that space. He'd always told her that she gave him hope, and now she gave him hurt, and that was Kasei's fault. Kasei took everything they had and warped it into a weapon to use against Ginoza, and Akane felt sick. She felt even worse that she could do nothing. This was a game Kasei was playing, and Akane didn't want to play, but she had to, and she was losing badly. 

Two months, and the plants still thrived even in the absence of their owner. Akane took a night to herself in the rec room, drinking wine, trying to remember the good that had happened here. At least she had her memories. 

She heard the door open, wondered if one of her Division had come to check on her before turning in for the night. She turned around and her heart nearly stopped. 

Ginoza stood there, eyes bruised with exhaustion, even thinner than before. “Inspector. I thought you might be here,” he said. 

“Why would you think that?” Akane asked, standing up. 

“I don't know,” Ginoza admitted. “I don't know a lot of things. I need to figure them out.” 

“So you came here?” Akane smiled at him. “You're always welcome to talk to me. We were colleagues, after all.” 

Ginoza nodded, playing with the glove that covered his artificial hand. “I want them back,” he said. 

“What?” 

“The memories. I know I've lost some. I know you were important to me. I don't know how, but I think about you and...I feel strange. Sad. I don't know why. I want to know.” 

Akane swallowed. “It's dangerous. The memories might get taken away again.” 

“I understand,” Ginoza said. He turned away, but Akane took a step forward. 

“Wait.” 

He turned back to her. 

“The memories might get taken away again,” Akane said, “and I don't want to cause you any more pain. But it's your choice.” 

Ginoza gave her a thin smile. “They might not.” 

And it was small. Three words, not the three that she'd heard so often when they both knew how much they meant to each other, but they meant more than she could properly express. Words that reflected the many times Akane had tried to soothe Ginoza's fears, his doubts, that she used to counter the times when his thoughts turned to the worst possible outcome. 

Three words that gave her hope.


End file.
